In the early 1400s came the invention of the coiled spring or fusee which maintained constant force to the gear wheels of the timekeeper despite the changing tension of its mainspring.

Both teams will be keen to finish first in the group, for a likely second-round matchup with Spain awaits the Group G runner-up. And even mighty Brazil might want to sidestep that one.

No host nation has failed to reach the second round and South Africa’s national team, Bafana Bafana, which won the African Nations Cup in 1996, will stumble through on home support.